


Welcome Aboard

by literaryoblivion



Series: Freck's Inktober [16]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Pirate, F/F, Flirting, Pirates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-18
Updated: 2018-10-18
Packaged: 2019-08-03 20:44:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,751
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16333142
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/literaryoblivion/pseuds/literaryoblivion
Summary: Lydia is desperate to get to London and the only ship left that could possibly take her is a pirate ship. She decides to take her chances with it and demands to speak with the captain, only the captain is not who she expects.





	Welcome Aboard

**Author's Note:**

> So I feel like there's some implied power imbalance/boss-employee type of dynamics going on, but I didn't feel like it was enough to warrant the tag as it really is only implied. If you're worried though, I'll get more detailed in the end notes to avoid spoilers. :)

After much searching and going to every ship docked at that port, Lydia goes to the last one, knowing full-well it’s a pirate ship, but she’s desperate.

She stands near the boarding dock, both waiting for the men loading and unloading crates and trying to gather the courage to walk up it to speak with the captain. There’s a lull between loads, and she picks up her skirts and walks up the wood planks up to the boat.

Everyone seems to be too busy with their own tasks to notice her. She looks around as she does her best to stay out of the way, searching for someone that looks like they have authority, perhaps someone with a large hat, that’s usually something pirate captains wear, right?

She spots a man with an upturned nose and freckles wearing what she thinks could qualify talking with a taller more muscular, grumpy man, and she decides to approach. She coughs slightly to get their attention when she’s standing near them, and they both turn to her, eyes round as saucers.

“Uh,” the man in the hat says, before the grumpy one talks.

“Ma’am, if you’re looking for the passenger ship, I believe it is further up the dock,” he says, already moving towards her as if to bodily remove her from the ship.

“I’m not looking for the passenger ship. This is the ship I’m looking for.” She turns to the man in the hat. “Are you the captain? I’d like to discuss with you payment regarding my boarding and passage on your ship.”

The man in the hat shakes his head. “Oh no, that’s not me. Definitely not me. But, I’ll save you the trouble. The captain is going to tell you no. So you might as well move along, miss.”

Lydia narrows her eyes. “I’d like to find that out for myself. I’d like to speak to the captain directly. He can tell me no himself.”

The grumpy man suddenly looks less grumpy, half smiling at Lydia’s words. The man she thought had been the captain lifts an eyebrow. “Uh, do you know anything about this ship, miss?”

Trying to hide her annoyance (she is trying to convince them to let her onboard after all), she answers, “I know it’s a pirate ship, but you must have some kind of connection outside of piracy to allow safe dockage at the port. Or you have enough gold coin to pay the dock manager off.”

The man nods. “All safe assumptions. But do you know anything specific about this ship? The crew? Our captain?”

Lydia bites her lip because in truth she doesn’t. She hadn’t wanted to be warned off or have someone grow suspicious by asking around about the ship and its pilot and motley crew. She decides the best course of action is to evade the question. “Sir, if you’re trying to scare me off, it won’t work. I am not leaving until I’ve spoken to the captain of this vessel. So, if you’d please help me, I will gladly forget this interaction.”

The man looks at Lydia then at his broody companion, and they share a look before the man in the hat shrugs. “Miss, follow me and I’ll take you to the captain’s quarters; you can wait there.”

“Thank you,” Lydia says and follows the man in the hat further through narrow doors into a small room with a bed, a desk covered in letters, maps, and a compass, and a chair. The man pulls the chair out for her, gesturing silently for her to sit, and she does.

“I’ll let the captain know you’re waiting.” He leaves Lydia sitting as he shuts the door behind him. She tries to stay still, not snooping around. The last thing she wants is to have the captain walk in on her going through his drawers.

Luckily, she doesn’t have to wait for long. 

The doors open to reveal a woman with long brown hair in loose curls around her face and half covered with a black hat, half of the brim turned upwards the other half holding a feather. She’s in black thigh-high boots and a long burgundy coat, silver buttons along the sides, with a black belt that crosses from her shoulder to her chest where a pistol is held at her hip.

As Lydia takes her in, she can admittedly recognize that the woman is gorgeous, a fire recognizable, even by Lydia, in her brown eyes. It makes Lydia wonder who she is, perhaps a high-ranking person on the ship given her appearance, a first mate, maybe? Perhaps the captain sent her to deal with Lydia instead of himself.

“Can I help you?” the woman asks, stepping into the room and letting the door fall shut behind her. She lifts an eyebrow and cocks her hip slightly as she stares at Lydia.

“Yes, I’d like to speak to the captain of this vessel.”

“So, I’ve heard,” she says. She pauses, and when Lydia doesn’t say anything, she rolls her eyes. “Well, get on with it,” she says waving for Lydia to say something.

Lydia furrows her brow and stands. “I do not want to pass on a message to the captain. I want to speak with him directly.”

At the pronoun, the woman’s eyes narrow, and her slightly annoyed gaze turns to one of anger. “Miss, if you are looking for a male captain to speak with, you won’t find him on this ship.”

Lydia’s eyes widen in shock, her mouth open in an “O”. The woman continues,

“Good luck finding him on another ship.” She opens the door and stands, waiting for Lydia to exit.

“Wait. I’m sorry. I didn’t know or realize, Captain,” Lydia says, holding her hands up, non-threateningly. The tension in the other woman seems to lessen slightly at the title. “I assumed, which I shouldn’t have, and I sincerely apologize for my error. I did not mean to imply you are incapable of commanding this vessel and crew, which I’m sure you do an excellent job of doing.”

Slowly, the woman shuts the door again. “Your flattery has bought you some time. What is it you want?”

“I would like safe passage to up north, preferably to London, but if you can’t go that far, as far north as you can go is fine. I have money and can pay you what I have now, and I can get more once I’m in London.”

“London? That’s at least a month’s journey. What business do you have in London?”

Lydia keeps her face neutral. “Personal business.”

The woman lifts an eyebrow but seems to accept the answer. “A month is far too long to have a decorative piece on board, no matter how beautiful. I’m sorry, but I can’t help you.”

Angry, Lydia rushes towards the captain getting in her face. “I am  _ more _ than just ‘decorative,’  _ Captain _ ,” she spits. “For someone who gets upset when others judge you by your gender, you seem to be quite alright with doing it to someone else.”

The captain seems slightly taken aback, but a hint of a smile appears on her lips. “You make a good point.” She pauses, as if she’s thinking. “I’ll allow you on board for a trial period of… 10 days. We’ll be at the next port by then. If you haven’t pulled your weight to my satisfaction while here, I will drop you off at that port. If you seem to be more of an asset than a burden, you may continue on until I see fit or reach London, whichever comes first.”

Lydia takes a step back, nodding. “That seems fair. May I ask what I might be expected to do?”

With an almost Cheshire-like grin, the captain takes a step forward, getting back into Lydia’s space. Lydia refuses to back-up, so they’re almost nose to nose. “Anything I tell you to do,” the captain says, letting her fingers play with a loose curl of Lydia’s red hair near her shoulder.

At the gesture, Lydia should feel scared, threatened, vulnerable, and all those emotions are under the surface, but she also feels a slight thrill, an almost unconscious desire run through her at how close the captain is to her, how her fingertips brushed her collarbone when she reached for her hair.

“Just you?” Lydia asks, quiet, her eyes locked with the captain’s.

“Only me.” The captain’s eyes are certain, and once again Lydia can see the fierceness and challenge in them. “What’s your name?”

“Lydia Martin.”

“Well, Miss Lydia Martin,” the captain says, taking a step back and extending her hand. “Looks like we have a deal.”

Lydia accepts the hand and shakes it. The captain moves towards the door, but Lydia stops her with a hand on her shoulder, making her turn slightly to look back at Lydia. “What shall I call you? Captain?”

The captain nods. “Above deck, I’m Captain or Captain Argent.”

“And below?”

The captain grins, a sparkle in her eye. “You’ll just have to pay attention.” She continues to the door, opening it for Lydia. “I’ll have Stiles, the one who brought you here, take you to where you’ll be sleeping, give you the grand tour.”

Lydia knows when she’s being dismissed, so she nods, hoping she’s conveying her gratitude, as she leaves through the door.

“Oh, and Lydia,” Captain Argent says, wrapping a hand around Lydia’s wrist to keep her just inside the door. She leans in and whispers in Lydia’s ear, “In my personal quarters, it’s Allison.”

Lydia snaps her head to the side to lock her gaze with the Captain’s. “Why tell me that?” Lydia asks, near breathless.

Captain Argent’s eyes glint, her lips quirk up in a smirk. “Because I imagine you’ll be saying it quite frequently.”

A shiver runs down Lydia’s spine with the implications, and she feels her cheeks heat. Captain Argent lets her go and instantly the man from before--Stiles--appears at the door.

“Stiles,” Captain Argent says, “would you please show Miss Lydia Martin here where she’ll be sleeping and the other crew areas? I imagine you may have to teach her terms as well.”

Stiles seems slightly surprised at his task--probably that the captain is taking Lydia on board--but he nods with an “Aye, aye, Captain!” before leading the way back to the top deck. As Lydia tries to follow, Captain Argent calls out to her,

“Welcome aboard the  _ Silver Arrow _ , Miss Martin.”

**Author's Note:**

> Spoiler-y warning: Allison is the pirate captain and tells Lydia that she'll have to do what she says if Lydia stays on board with the rest of the crew (which is where the boss-employee/power dynamic comes in), and it's heavily implied that some of the things Allison will tell her to do would be sexual in nature. Lydia is kind of thrilled by it and not threatened and accepts it.
> 
> Side note: [THIS](https://slm-assets0.secondlife.com/assets/13711914/lightbox/marketplace-promo-1.jpg?1458851705), [THIS](https://slm-assets0.secondlife.com/assets/3739063/lightbox/marketplace-promo-2.jpg?1308177680), and [THIS](https://slm-assets3.secondlife.com/assets/3739067/lightbox/marketplace-promo-3.jpg?1308177700) is what I imagine Allison's outfit to be.
> 
> Come say hi on [my tumblr](http://literaryoblivion.tumblr.com) or [my twitter](http://twitter.com/lit_oblivion).


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